What Happens in Another Country
After Lost Butterfly ended, a post-credits scene appeared on the screen.
In the middle of a devastated land, Shirou leaped from a massive ravine and stood in front of the Berserker, who had been corrupted. The red bandages around his arm were unraveling, fluttering in the wind. The camera intentionally blurred parts of the scene, making Shirou's figure in the wasteland appear hazy. Compared to the towering Berserker, Shirou seemed small and fragile. Yet, his eyes gleamed with unwavering determination.
As Shirou softly murmured, "Trace on!" a weapon identical to Berserker's appeared in his hand, and the two began to clash. Though the outcome of this fight was unclear, this scene alone excited many fans.
After all, Shirou, who had played a relatively minor role in the first two movies, seemed to be rising to prominence in this final part. He could even replicate Berserker's weapon and face him head-on!
"Wow, Shirou fighting Berserker at the end was so cool!" said Elijah, excited as he left the theater with his best friend, Warren.
"It really was!" Warren agreed.
Lost Butterfly concluded spectacularly, with the fairy tale segment of Sakura's story being a particular highlight. The movie's opening day grossed 1.9 billion yuan, and most viewers rated it highly. The positive reception drew even more people to the theaters, with many who were hooked by the second part going back to watch the first one.
This led to a surge of online discussions about Fate/Stay Night (FSN), even trending at one point.
"As expected, the Porter has a knack for stirring things up," one comment read.
"I can't believe the Porter would let Sakura, the main heroine, be subjected to such horrible things by that seaweed-haired guy and those bugs! And then she turns into a monster that eats people?"
"Man, that was heartbreaking. Sakura's story is so tragic. That dirty Zouken really deserved to die. Even in Fate/Zero, he was a monster for what he did to such a young girl."
"Exactly! I had a feeling Sakura would have a terrible future after watching Fate/Zero, but this was even worse than I imagined."
"Wait, what's Fate/Zero (FZ)? Shouldn't the abbreviation be FSN?"
"New fan? FZ is Fate/Zero, the prequel to Fate/Stay Night. FSN follows after the events of FZ."
"Oh, got it. I haven't watched it yet. I'll definitely check it out!"
"Besides Sakura's story, there were so many mysteries in this one! Like, who exactly is Archer? I think he's a future version of Shirou."
"I think so too! They look way too similar."
Compared to the first movie, Lost Butterfly left many more clues and mysteries, giving fans much to discuss. Of course, the post-credits scene was one of the biggest talking points. The idea of Shirou facing off against Berserker left everyone eager for what would come next, significantly boosting the hype for the final installment.
Meanwhile, in Japan...
At the Japan Go Association, the high-ranking officials were gathered for a meeting.
"Everyone, we've reached a critical point in the survival of our Go culture!" announced Nine-Headed Dragon, a ninth-dan Go master and chairman of the association, seated at the head of the table. His tone was grave as he addressed the room.
Looking around, he continued, "Currently, in the Three Go Nations, our country's Go players are the weakest! We haven't won a single international Go championship in years, and our public interest and number of Go players are declining every year!"
"Remember the golden age when we established this Go association and implemented the ranking system? Back then, not only did we surpass Korea, but we also left the Go origin country, Celestial Empire, far behind!" Nine-Headed Dragon exclaimed.
"But now, both of those nations have overtaken us. Even Korea is stronger than us now! If this continues, we might as well commit seppuku from the shame of facing our Go ancestors!"
"..."
After Nine-Headed Dragon finished speaking, the room remained silent.
This issue had been ongoing for a long time. If it could've been solved with just a meeting, the number of Go players wouldn't be decreasing each year.
Seeing the silence in the room, Nine-Headed Dragon sighed. Suddenly, his eyes landed on a man who seemed to want to say something but was holding back. He recognized him as a young ninth-dan player who had recently been promoted: Felix.
"Young Felix, do you have something to share?" Nine-Headed Dragon asked.
"Yes, Chairman!" Felix stood up, addressing his senior colleagues. "Why not use manga? The manga industry has become a pillar of our nation, and young people love it more than ever, while interest in Go is declining. If no one is paying attention to Go, it won't matter if we win international championships or not. People won't join if they're not interested."
With growing passion, Felix continued, "We should focus on young people! As they say in the Celestial Empire, the children are the flowers of the future! We need to appeal to what young people like. By using manga, we can make Go more interesting and attract them to the game. The more young players we attract, the more Go geniuses we'll eventually see!"
"Manga?" murmured the room as members exchanged glances.
Some frowned, clearly skeptical of Felix's suggestion, while others nodded in agreement, feeling his idea had merit.
Nine-Headed Dragon also furrowed his brow in thought, making Felix swallow nervously.
After a while, Nine-Headed Dragon spoke again, "Using manga to attract young people is indeed a good idea, but... Go is very technical. Conveying that through manga will be challenging."
Felix was at a loss for words after hearing this.
It was true that Go was a highly technical game, and getting a manga artist unfamiliar with the game to accurately depict it...
----------
For 10 advance chapters: patreon.com/michaeltranslates